Why we built Kitchen Kings & Queens

How open play used to go

We ran our open play with a round robin, and we used a paddle rack to keep track of who was next. It worked on paper.

Then real Saturdays happened. Someone came late, someone didn’t show up, someone had to leave early, and the lineup fell apart. Teams ended up unbalanced, some players got more games than others, and we spent a lot of time just working out who was next and who wasn’t.

What we wanted instead

• A quality game for every player, every time they step on court.
• Balanced lineups, so games are close and fun.
• No more standing around trying to figure out whose turn it is.

What we built

Kitchen Kings & Queens runs our open play from one phone.

• One fair line

  Whoever has played the fewest games goes next, and ties go to whoever has waited longest.

• Balanced teams

  Players at the same level play together when there are enough of them, and teams are evened out.

• Late arrivals

  They join the back of the line, like putting a paddle at the end of the rack, so nobody who has been waiting gets skipped.

• Early leavers

  If someone has to leave in the middle of a game, the app suggests who takes their place.

• Your spot on your phone

  Scan the QR code, tap your name once, and see your place in line and who is on deck.

• A record of every game

  Games, wins and losses for the day and all time, plus who you played with most.

How we made sure it’s fair

We didn’t want to find out on a Saturday that it wasn’t fair, so we tested it first. We ran simulated 3-hour open plays with 32 players on 4 courts, including late arrivals and early leavers.

of the typical player’s count, for everyone who stayed all day

Within 1 game

is the typical wait between games

About 12 min

was the longest anyone waited

Under 30 min

What’s next

This is just the start. We have more features planned, and we want to share them with every club that has the same problem we did.

We’re working on more tools for organizers, and we’d love to open the app up to other clubs. If Reclub ever opens its doors to apps like ours, we’d like to connect to it too, so your player list comes in on its own.

Who we are

• M

  Michael

  Co-founder · Olongapo City

• JP

  JP

  Co-founder · Olongapo City